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“Counting of votes afresh.
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7. (1) The court may, for the purposes of the trial of a petition questioning a Dáil election, if it thinks fit, order that all the votes cast on voting machines at the election in the constituency to which the petition relates shall be counted afresh. For the purpose of enabling such an order to be carried out, the software used for counting votes cast on voting machines shall include a capability of providing a table of the preferences recorded for each vote cast at the poll at the election, including the vote number referred to in section 44(4) and a separate record of each vote cast at the election, showing the preferences recorded on it, the vote number referred to in section 44(4) and, where applicable, the number of each count at which the vote was either transferred to the next available preference recorded on it or became a non-transferable vote not effective.
(2) Where the court makes an order under paragraph (1), the provisions of the following paragraphs shall have effect.
(3) Votes to which an order under this Rule relates shall be counted afresh under the direction of the court and, subject to paragraphs (4), (5) and (6) and to such modifications (if any) as the court considers necessary, the provisions of Part XIX, as applied by the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001, relating to the counting of votes at an election shall apply to such counting.
(4) In counting the votes afresh pursuant to an order under this Rule, the count shall begin at the first count, without disturbing the mix carried out by the constituency vote counting machine prior to the original first count.
(5) Where votes are counted afresh pursuant to an order under this Rule, the court shall cause the preferences recorded for any person who, with respect to the relevant Dáil election, is found by the court not to have been eligible for election to the Dáil to be disregarded or where the court decides that votes shall be added to, or removed from, the vote table referred to in section 44(4) the software shall be capable of so adding or removing votes so that there shall be a minimum disturbance to the mix carried out by the constituency vote counting machine prior to the original first count.
(6) The court shall have power to reverse any decision of the returning officer at the original count.
(7) The costs of giving effect to an order under this Rule shall be paid by the Minister for Finance out of the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof and section 32 shall, with respect to the services and expenses properly rendered or incurred by the returning officer for the purposes of, or in connection with, giving effect to the order, apply in the same manner as it applied in respect of the services and expenses rendered or incurred by the returning officer for, or in connection with, the relevant Dáil election.”.
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